The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, and more particularly to a gaming device having a high-low game.
Gaming devices provide enjoyment and excitement to players, in part, because they may ultimately lead to a monetary award for the player. Gaming devices also provide enjoyment and excitement to players because they are fun to play. Bonus or secondary games, in particular, provide gaming device manufacturers with an opportunity to add enjoyment and excitement to that which is already expected from a primary or base wagering game of the gaming device. Bonus games provide extra awards to the player and enable the player to play a game that is different than the base game.
A continuing need exists to provide gaming devices that issue awards in an exciting and enjoyable manner. In this respect, it is desirable to enable the player to have an impact on, or a hand in, determining the player's ultimate award. It is also desirable to enable a player to optimize an award. It is further desirable to increase the level of player interaction. Each of these features can be desirable in a base or primary game and in a bonus or secondary game.
One popular game requiring players to think and decide before making a selection, the success of which is decided by a random selection, is the game of High-Low. High-Low is normally played with a conventional deck of cards. Different forms of this game exist, but they each include a common component; namely, the player is shown at least one card and must guess whether the next card is higher.
In one known High-Low Card game, the player is dealt a card. The player guesses whether the next card will be higher or lower than the dealt card. If the player is wrong, the player pays a penalty. If the player is right, the player keeps the card and guesses again. If the player guesses right three times in a row, the player may hand off the three accumulated cards to the next player. When a player guesses wrong, the player pays a penalty for each accumulated card. In one embodiment, the game ends and the player loses all money wagered in the game and all money won in the game previously.
Other High-Low Card games require the player to guess right five times in a row to win. When played merely for excitement and enjoyment, if the same card is generated after the player's guess, the player loses because the card is not higher or lower. In other variations, however, the same card yields a draw.
In gaming establishments, a High-Low Card game concept is employed in manual or video poker “double-ups.” In “double-up” poker gaming, a player can risk a currently achieved award to double the player's award. In such games, the dealer deals the player and the dealer a card. If the player's card beats the dealer's card, the player obtains double the award. If the dealer's card wins, the player gets nothing. In another game, the dealer deals a plurality of displayed cards and the player picks one of the cards the player believes will be less than or greater than the next card dealt. In poker double-ups, a tie typically results in a draw, whereby the player can double-up again or keep the previously accumulated win.
High-Low Card games are fun, exciting, simple, interactive and involve mathematical thought. Accordingly, new and different high-low games can make an entertaining primary or bonus game for a wagering gaming device.